More than 4,000 unregistered buildings have been discovered across Malaga by drones, an investigation revealed.

Last year the General Directorate of Cadastre launched an investigation to shed light on the number of undeclared buildings in the province.

Between January and December 2017, 4,080 undeclared buildings were identified by drones, of which 2,713 were residential homes.

During Spain’s property boom years, residential construction was rife as supply struggled to meet with growing demand. By the end of 2017, Malaga province was home to 1,456,525 legal buildings, according to the General Directorate of Cadastre, with nearly 550,000 of them constructed from the year 2000 and onward.

The government is now issuing fines on those undeclared properties and ordering the repayment of years of missed taxes. Twenty three municipalities were investigated last year including Monda, Ojen and Ronda; Benahavis is said to be next on the list.